March 8, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

By Aditi Sangal, Adrienne Vogt, Meg Wagner, Jessie Yeung, Steve George, Sana Noor Haq, George Ramsay, Ed Upright, Amir Vera and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN

Updated 12:00 a.m. ET, March 9, 2022
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2:05 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

CIA director estimates up to 14,000 Russians have been arrested for protesting Ukraine invasion

From CNN's Aaron Pellish

Russian police detain a protester in Moscow on March 6.
Russian police detain a protester in Moscow on March 6. (Yuri Kochetkov/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

CIA Director Bill Burns testified to the US House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday that “something like 13 or 14,000” Russian citizens have been arrested for protesting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Burns said the current opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin among Russian citizens “is not a small thing” but noted the prevalence of state-run media will make it difficult for popular dissent to build quickly. 

“You see funerals in Russia of, you know, young Russian soldiers who were killed in Ukraine coming home and that clearly is going to have an impact over time. You also see, in relatively small numbers, but a lot of very courageous Russians out on the street protesting,” he said.  

“Something like 13 or 14,000 have been arrested since then, which is not a small thing in a deeply repressive country like Russia,” Burns added. 

Burns said the US will monitor Putin’s domestic popularity as the war in Ukraine continues but cautioned that Putin’s control of the media will help stave him stave off some popular unrest. 

“In an environment in which the Russian state media dominates what a lot of people hear about what’s going on in Ukraine, it’s going to take time, I think, for people to absorb the consequences of the choices that (Putin’s) made personally,” Burns said. 

1:32 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

37 nations say Russia and Belarus "should not be permitted to host" any international sporting events

From CNN's Jennifer Hansler

Thirty-seven nations, including the United States, said in a joint statement Tuesday that Russia and Belarus "should not be permitted to host, bid for, or be awarded any international sporting events” in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Russia’s unprovoked and unjustifiable war of choice against Ukraine, enabled by the Belarusian government, is abhorrent and a flagrant breach of its international obligations. Respect for human rights and peaceful relations between nations form the foundation of international sport,” according to the joint statement, which was “was agreed upon by the ministers of sport or their equivalent.”

The statement also said that “individual athletes selected by Russia and Belarus, administrators and teams representing the Russian or Belarusian state should be banned from competing in other countries, including those representing bodies, cities or brands that are effectively representing Russia or Belarus, such as major football clubs,” and “wherever possible, appropriate actions should be taken to limit sponsorship and other financial support from entities with links to the Russian or Belarusian states.”

The nations called on all international sporting federations to do the same.

The statement also encouraged sports organizations "not to sanction athletes, coaches or officials who decide to unilaterally terminate their contracts with Russian, Belarusian or Ukrainian clubs, as well as not to pursue or to sanction sport organizers which decide to ban athletes or teams selected by Russia or Belarus.”

1:30 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

UK will "drive forward" with "debilitating" the Russian economy alongside allies, foreign secretary says

From CNN's Max Foster and Arnaud Siad

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said she would be traveling to Washington, DC, on Tuesday to meet her American counterpart Antony Blinken. 

The United Kingdom will “drive forward” with “debilitating” the Russian economy alongside allies, Truss said in a briefing on Tuesday ahead of the visit to the US.

“What we’re (…) working with our allies to do is to debilitate the Russian economy, to stop the funding that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is using for his war machine. We’ve implemented sanctions on the Russian central bank, on the SWIFT system, we’ve frozen bank assets and in fact the UK is freezing more bank assets than any other country, we’ve frozen a total of 364 billion ($478 billion) worth of assets. We’ve also closed UK airspace to Russian planes as well as closing our ports to Russian vessels,” Truss said.

Now is not the time to let up. We need to continue to drive forward in our support to Ukraine and our debilitation of the Russian economy,” Truss said.

“Oil and gas (are) important and we are working with the G7 in terms of creating a timetable for a reduction on dependency on Russian oil and gas and we need to go further on banks, we need to completely eliminate access to the SWIFT system, we need to freeze more bank assets,” Truss added.

“It’s important that we remain strong and united with our allies and it’s important that we ensure that Putin loses in Ukraine. The consequences of him not losing are simply too awful to contemplate,” she warned.

Truss said Putin’s invasion of Ukraine had “shattered European security” and the UK and allies were now “in a battle for information with Russia.” The Foreign Secretary said that in consequence, the UK had re-established an information unit that had been abandoned after the end of the Cold War.

Aside debilitating the Russian economy, Truss said the UK’s strategy also consisted in providing defensive weapons and humanitarian aid to Ukraine as well as isolating Russia diplomatically.

"What we’re working to do together with our G7 allies is encourage more of those countries to supply defensive weapons in support to Ukraine and encourage more of those countries to join us in sanctioning Russia. And it’s significant that countries like Switzerland, South Korea, Singapore have all joined that effort,” she said.

“I’m traveling to America to forward this agenda and I think it’s important to note that global security is indivisible, what is good for the Euro-Atlantic is good for the Indo-Pacific, and a strong NATO will help deter aggressors everywhere. And that is why we need to step up our efforts to strengthen European security together with our allies in Europe, including the EU and our NATO allies but also with the United States and allies like Japan,” Truss said.
1:23 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

US secretary of defense holds calls with European defense ministers about war in Ukraine

From CNN's Ellie Kaufman

United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke with the Defense Ministers of Slovakia, the United Kingdom, and France amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis, a senior US defense official told reporters Tuesday.

The calls were “all centered around the war in Ukraine and what the United States is doing to continue to provide security assistance to Ukraine,” the official said.

“He [Austin] thanked each of these leaders ... for their country’s support to Ukraine, and for the assurance and deterrence measures they are all taking to help strengthen NATO’s Eastern Flank,” the official added.

1:26 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

McDonald's is temporarily shutting down its Russian restaurants

From CNN’s Danielle Wiener-Bronner

Big Mac hamburgers are seen at a McDonald's restaurant in Pushkin Square in Moscow in 2020.
Big Mac hamburgers are seen at a McDonald's restaurant in Pushkin Square in Moscow in 2020. (Alexander Shcherbak/TASS via Getty Images)

McDonald's is temporarily closing its locations in Russia. 

"McDonald's has decided to temporarily close all our restaurants in Russia and pause all operations in the market," CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a statement Tuesday.

There were 847 locations of McDonald's in Russia at the close of last year, according to an investor document. 

Globally, most McDonald's locations are operated by franchise operators. But that's not the case in Russia, where 84% of locations are operated by the company, according to the document. 

Russia's restaurants, along with another 108 in Ukraine, all operated by McDonald's, accounted for 9% of the company's revenue in 2021, according to the document. 

"In Russia, we employ 62,000 people who have poured their heart and soul into our McDonald's brand to serve their communities. We work with hundreds of local, Russian suppliers and partners who produce the food for our menu and support our brand," Kempczinski said. "And we serve millions of Russian customers each day who count on McDonald's. In the thirty-plus years that McDonald's has operated in Russia, we've become an essential part of the 850 communities in which we operate." 

But, he added, "at the same time, our values mean we cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine." 

Several Western companies across multiple industries have halted operations in Russia after the country's attack on Ukraine. 

CNN’s Carolyn Sung contributed reporting to this post.

1:11 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

US cannot confirm the death of Russian general, senior US defense official says

From CNN’s Barbara Starr

The United States cannot confirm Ukrainian claims to have killed Russian Maj. Gen. Vitaly Gerasimov, a senior US defense official said Tuesday.

The official also said the United States had no knowledge of a family relationship between Vitaly Gerasimov and Valery Gerasimov, who is the chief of staff of the Russian Armed Forces – the top ranking Russian military officer.

Earlier today, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense said Gerasimov was killed in battle near Kharkiv.

The short statement on Monday offered no proof of the death of Gerasimov, and gave no details of when he was killed.

1:06 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

Food and consumer goods giant Unilever suspends all imports and exports of products to Russia

From CNN's Robert North

Unilever's logo is seen in Rotterdam, Netherlands, on February 8.
Unilever's logo is seen in Rotterdam, Netherlands, on February 8. (Peter Boer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Unilever has suspended all imports and exports of its products to Russia is stopping all investment in the country.

The food and consumer goods giant, which owns household-name brands including Ben & Jerry's and Dove, will also cease all media and advertising spending in Russia and says it will not profit from its presence in Russia.

In a statement the firm said “We will continue to supply our everyday essential food and hygiene products made in Russia to people in the country. We will keep this under close review.” It added "We join calls for an end to this war and hope that peace, human rights, and the international rule of law will prevail.”

Speaking about its operations in Ukraine, Unilever said "Our business operations in Ukraine have stopped and we are now fully focused on ensuring the safety of our Ukrainian employees and their families, including helping with their evacuation where necessary, and providing additional financial support. We have also committed to donate €5m of essential Unilever products to the humanitarian relief effort.”

12:58 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

Russian hacking in Ukraine was less than anticipated, NSA director tells US lawmakers

From CNN's Sean Lyngaas

Russia has conducted “several” cyberattacks in Ukraine in recent weeks, but the level of hacking has still not been “what we had anticipated” prior to the war, Gen. Paul Nakasone, National Security Agency director, told lawmakers Tuesday.

The relatively muted Russian activity in cyberspace is due to defensive measures from the Ukrainians, “some of the challenges that the Russians have encountered, and some of the work that others have been able to prevent their actions,” said Nakasone, who also heads US Cyber Command, said at the House Intelligence Committee’s worldwide threats hearing.

US officials have watched and tracked “very carefully” three of four of the Russian cyberattacks in Ukraine, Nakasone said without elaborating.

US national security officials from multiple agencies have provided Ukrainian officials with cybersecurity assistance to track threats and recover from hacking incidents.

Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February, there were a series of cyberattacks that disrupted the websites of Ukrainian government agencies and, in other cases, wiped data from agency networks. The White House blamed Russia’s GRU military agency for the first set of website-disrupting cyberattacks that occurred in January. Moscow denied the allegation.

Washington has poured millions of dollars into bolstering Ukraine’s cyber defenses following a pair of alleged Russian cyberattacks in 2015 and 2016 that cut electricity in parts of Ukraine.

12:47 p.m. ET, March 8, 2022

America's oil and gas industry supports Biden's ban on Russian energy imports

From CNN’s Kate Trafecante

US President Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Tuesday .
US President Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Tuesday . (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

America's oil and gas industry says it supports President Biden's plan to ban Russian oil, natural gas, and coal imports into the US.

"Our industry is prepared to comply with the import ban in response to this aggression," said Mike Sommers, president and CEO of the powerful American Petroleum Institute, on Tuesday, referring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"The industry has already taken significant and meaningful steps to unwind relationships, both with respect to assets in Russia, as well as imports of Russian crude oil and refined products. We share the goal of reducing reliance on foreign energy sources and urge policymakers to advance American energy leadership and expand domestic production to counter Russia’s influence in global energy markets."

Some context: Russia accounts for a small amount of the total energy imports into the US — about 8% last year. The API is the largest trade group for the U.S. oil and gas industry, whose members include Exxon Mobil, Chevron, BP and Shell.

Shell announced earlier on Tuesday that it will stop purchasing Russian crude oil and completely withdraw from the Russian energy industry "aligned with new government guidance.”

In his speech Tuesday, Biden acknowledged the oil and gas firms pulling out of Russia, but once again warned companies not to take advantage of soaring oil costs to raise prices and pad profits. 

Sommers told CNN in an interview last month that U.S. oil companies would not seek to capitalize on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying his members want to do what’s best for consumers around the world.